Noah Donohoe inquest jury start fifth day of deliberations

The jury at the inquest into the death of Belfast school boy Noah Donohoe has started its fifth day of deliberations.

It comes after a long-running coronial probe which started in January examining the death of the 14-year-old whose body was found in an underground water tunnel in the north of the city in June 2020.

A post-mortem examination concluded that the cause of Noah’s death was drowning.

Northwood Park and Northwood road in Belfast where school boy Noah Donohoe was last seen before his death in 2020 (Niall Carson/PA)

PA Archive

Noah had been missing for six days with large scale search operations mounted to find him.

An inquest into his death started in January and heard evidence from 76 witnesses and statements from a further 42 people, and involved maps, video footage, photographs, police logs and expert reports.

It resumed at Belfast Coroner’s Court on Monday following an adjournment in July.

Coroner Mr Justice Rooney dismissed one juror before the remaining nine – seven men and two women – resumed their deliberations.

Proceedings were adjourned at the start of July after jurors had deliberated for 24 hours over three days and were unable to reach an unanimous verdict.

Noah’s mother, Fiona, has been present for every day of the inquest.

Jurors have been tasked with agreeing findings on 10 questions, including the date of Noah’s death and whether any errors made by police contributed to his death.